my birthday & Lake Tahoe

Friday I turned 32. How scary is that??! Regardless, I tried to enjoy the day as much as possible. It was really nice - and even included a digital message from Nanny in Georgia! 

Looking good!

We left Friday morning for the Hyatt Resort on the north shore of Lake Tahoe. We'd spent time on the south shore before, near South Lake Tahoe, but this time we were headed near Truckee, CA / Kings Beach, CA and ultimately to Incline Village, NV.

It was a nice drive up - took us about 5 hours but only because we made multiple stops for gas, lunch at Chick-Fil-A, and lots of potty breaks.

Caroline loved her iPod time. 

 The weather got steadily colder and cloudier. We left 77 degrees at home in Cupertino and arrived in 45 degrees and raining at Lake Tahoe. It finally felt like fall and it was amazing.

The kids enjoying the warm fireplace blazing in the lobby.

 We were upgraded to the "Family Suite" which had built-in bunk beds for the kiddos. They were SOOOO excited and loved it! They could even see the TV from bed so their life was pretty much complete at that point.

Jack: top, Caroline bottom. 

Too bad we missed both the spa and casino. #lifewithkids

After we arrived, we stretched our legs with a walk around the property.

View out our window.

A little stream hiking.

 Finally we walked across the street to the beach on the lake. It was sooo beautiful. Breathtaking! The water is impeccably clear and the glassy water stretched on forever.

That water was probably 3 feet deep and you can see every ridge on the bottom!

I loved being on the water in the cold air. So REFRESHING :)

Skipping rocks. Caroline tried sooo hard. 

Warming our hands by the fire pits they had all over.

Friday night we ate at the hotel restaurant (where the kids devoured huge plates of spaghetti) and then we crashed. We woke up Saturday morning and decided to go hiking. After a few detours, we made it.

It was really, really REALLY cold. 

Overnight, the lake went from glassy to choppy. 

What IS this pose??

Justin took most of the photos (courtesy of the new iPhone 6!) so they aren't on my phone. But we had a fantastic time hiking. It was really hard work - lots of rocks, steep uphills where we had to carry Caroline in the backpack, and poor Jack even fell once and smacked his head against a rock, but he was fine. It was a beautiful family day unplugged and away from it all! 

We all went back to the room and crashed for 3 hour naps, and then woke up for an early dinner at this super small local taco & burrito place. It was ahhh-mazing. Homemade everything and so delicious. We ate it all up and then walked the mile+ back to our hotel. 

Caroline stopped to look at the lake every chance she got. 

We spent Saturday night soaking in the hot tub, swimming in the indoor/outdoor pool, and roasting s'mores by the fire pits. It was awesome!

Sunday morning we got up, had a leisurely breakfast, and hit the road. By the time we got home, it was 80 degrees and sunny. So strange! But it was a fantastic trip and we really fell in love with the area. We can't wait to go back!